


we're stumbling through this mess, baby

by almanacs



Category: Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Kidnapping, M/M, Too Much Bad Flirting, aka seongwoo is definitely not a damsel in distress
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-23
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-12-05 15:50:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11581248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/almanacs/pseuds/almanacs
Summary: In a crazy superhuman world, Seongwoo sure thought he was relatively normal.





	we're stumbling through this mess, baby

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pallavens](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pallavens/gifts).



> hi amanda, i know you never asked for this but i hope you enjoy it anyways <3 thanks for dragging me into this hell hole with u

In a crazy superhuman world, Seongwoo sure is relatively normal.

Everyday he turns on the television to hear about villains and monsters wreaking havoc across the world. Superheroes who risk their lives to combat evil, all in justice’s name, their legacy glorified and paraded. Meanwhile, Seongwoo’s in his underwear, eating a bowl of cereal, and fulfilling _his_ civic duty by working a terrible 9-5 job he hates. 

It’s all very routine: wake up, exist, sleep, repeat. He’s so bothered by his uneventful day to day life, the existence of people with superpowers kind of fades into the background. 

That’s what Seongwoo thinks, until an anomaly slams into him. Quite literally.

Usually on a Thursday evening, he’d come home from work, pick up dinner at the nearby Thai restaurant, and catch reruns of his favourite drama. Fate has a different plan for him today, Seongwoo inwardly groans as he’s knocked back into a nearby wall by some whacko on wheels. 

Seongwoo barely has time to think before a knife gets shoved in his face, rendering him utterly useless. His hands go up in a defensive stance and he gives the culprit a withering glance.

Fuck, he’s being _mugged_. This is all kinds of mortifying. Who’s going to take care of his fish when he dies? 

“Really?” Seongwoo starts, tone unwavering, exhausted even. “I just wanted to have a nice dinner--” 

Whacko on wheels has the audacity to cut him off. “Hand over all your valuables and you won’t get hurt.” Oh, a classic villainous line. Seongwoo almost snorts at how ridiculous the situation is. 

Wordlessly taking off his watch and shaking off his bag, Seongwoo drops it on the floor and steps back with a resigned sigh. He’s in the middle of wondering what’s on his will, in case shit does hit the fan, when someone jumps in and shocks both him and the culprit, causing him to recoil.

Seongwoo squints at the figure, face contorted between wonder and amusement. Tall, lean, bulky shoulders and spandex covering skin for days--this must be a superhero, materialized right in the flesh instead of on a TV. Actually, he looks really familiar, now that Seongwoo thinks about it. Before he has time to comprehend the situation even further, the man speaks and Seongwoo stills. 

“Give the kind man his valuables back,” the superhero says, flashing his 100 mega-watt smile in his direction. Seongwoo squints even harder. If he’d known any better, that was a rather flirtatious smile. Kind of strange in this situation but Seongwoo returns it with a curt nod. His mother didn’t raise an ill-mannered boy, after all.

The culprit spits on the floor and edges closer, waving the knife threateningly in front of them. “ _This_ is all for show.” He gestures at the superhero’s outfit and Seongwoo purses his lip. He does have a point. Is it for show? Oh my god, they’re going to die. “You can’t do shit. So unless you want to get hurt, I’ll be leaving without either of you following me.” 

The superhero laughs heartily and goes into an attack position. Thunder starts rumbling but Seongwoo distinctly remembers the weather network didn’t call for any rain today. He would know, he checks the news every morning. Small electrifying currents envelope the man’s arm and he can feel the hair on the back of his neck stand.

Seongwoo can’t believe it right now. He’s going to witness a fight and he hopes this isn’t weird because he’s excited and nervous and wants to throw up a little. Not in his wildest dreams would he think his ordinary life would be so entertaining for once. If his mother knew of his kick for danger, she’d probably lock him up in the house forever. For now, it’s going to be his little secret.

The culprit stares, wide-eyed and open-mouthed. One lightning strike hitting the floor next to the culprit scares him enough to drop Seongwoo’s belongings and run off apologizing. The superhero picks up the items and presents them to Seongwoo. 

“I believe these are yours,” he says, and Seongwoo accepts it gratefully. 

“Thank you,” Seongwoo responds, flushing a little. “Sorry for… you know. Having to save me.”

The superhero shakes his head sheepishly, his hair glistening when the sun hits it. “It’s my pleasure to meet and help people like you.” 

It’s a little awkward for a moment. Both of them dwelling in prolonged silence. Seongwoo’s unsure of what the protocols are whenever you’re face to face with a superhero. Do you report it to the authorities? Give them a hug? Honestly, he’s new to this whole superhero encounter thing. 

“Well, I should probably go,” Seongwoo finally says, gesturing to the path that takes him home. 

“Right! Of course!” the superhero responds, all matter of fact, giving that stupid cute laughter that already sounds like music to his ears. “Maybe we’ll meet again?” It sounds hopeful. He tries not to think too much about it.

Seongwoo grins, walking away and waving to the figure. “Maybe. But let’s hope not under these circumstances.”

With that, they bid each other good-bye and Seongwoo’s chest feels tight.

When he gets home, Seongwoo slumps on the chair and takes a deep breath. 

Well. That was an interesting day. 

 

 

He learns that the superhero’s name is God Niel. Short for Daniel. God because he’s Mr. Swoon-Worthy. Jokes aside, apparently he got the nickname God because of his power’s affinity to the sky, and because people are (unsurprisingly) in love with him. Daniel is one of the city’s most formidable superheroes, and he’s surprised the name initially escaped him when Seongwoo would see him on television every single day. Whether it be catching crooks or stopping the dam from overflowing, God Niel does it all. 

Seongwoo thought that this one encounter would be enough to satisfy his thrill for adventure.

Except these occurrences keep _happening_. 

The week after, Seongwoo gets cornered in the washroom by some lunatic who broke into his house demanding all his jewelry. Daniel comes by in the knick of time and pulverizes him. Seongwoo clutches the towel around his waist like his life depended on it and flusteredly thanks Daniel again. Another time, Seongwoo gets kidnapped by God Niel’s arch nemesis and was being ransomed for half a million dollars. His poor mother had a heart attack when she saw his face on the news with an outstanding fee attached to his image. So much for keeping it a secret. At least Seongwoo can say he’s city famous now. 

It happens so often, Seongwoo decides to joke around with Daniel after he rescues Seongwoo again. This time, it’s from a shapeshifter who posed as his fucking _boss_ to lure him into a pit of toxic acid. He was promised a raise too, from this shapeshifter-boss and now it sucks, knowing it was all a hoax. 

“Are you…” Seongwoo trails off, fingertips drumming on his chin, wondering how he can soften the blow. “Stalking me?”

Daniel starts sputtering, dropping the rope that is currently coiled around Seongwoo. “Of course not! Trust me when I say the thing I want to do least is inconvenience you!” 

Seongwoo shrugs the rope holding him hostage off and pokes an accusatory finger at Daniel’s chest. “Then why are you always here? Better yet, why do all these villains hate you?” 

“... We’ve had history.”

“You’ve had history with 12 of these villains I’ve encountered the past 3 weeks.”

“It’s an occupational hazard.”

“Jesus christ.”

It’s driving him fucking insane, constantly being kidnapped and cornered. But hey, he gets to hangout with the city’s biggest superstar. At least that counts for something. 

 

 

This is the 5th time he’s been kidnapped this week. Seongwoo’s so far behind on his television shows, it’s sad. He’s not even busy. 

“What the fuck did you do to this guy?” Seongwoo asks, incredulous after Daniel burns one of his enemies to a crisp. The burnt smell of flesh is somewhat nauseating, but Seongwoo gets used to it rather quickly. Daniel unties the knot holding his hands together. His wrists are red and itchy. “He was talking about cutting off your arms and making a big artistic spectacle out of it in front of the city hall. I had to sit through 6 hours of him saying disturbing shit. I want my mind cleansed and my time back.”

“Threw him and his family in jail,” Daniel mutters, firmly grabbing hold of Seongwoo’s hands so they can leave the place together. This is different. It feels warm. No, Seongwoo definitely isn’t internally screaming.

“No wonder! I’d throw you in jail for that too!”

“Look, they threatened humankind’s existence 3 times now! I think they had it coming,” Daniel explains, arms gesticulating everywhere in a physical attempt to rationalize his decision. Seongwoo rolls his eyes. 

Daniel suddenly stops and Seongwoo bumps into his back. Damn it, why is his back so solid and huggable. Turning around, Daniel holds Seongwoo’s arms between his hands and their eyes meet. Seongwoo shifts his gaze elsewhere, embarrassed. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that. Through all of this. When I said I hoped to meet again, I definitely didn’t want to do that under these circumstances.”

Seongwoo cocks his head to the side, face perplexed. “Like you wanted to meet up as friends?”

Daniel turns his head left and right, unsure. “Uh…. Well, I guess….”

Seongwoo slaps Daniel on the back, making him jump. “Why didn’t you say so! All you had to do was ask. I swear if you were paying these supervillains to fuck with me just so we can hangout, I’d have to question your work ethics.”

At that, Seongwoo walks ahead happily, leaving a very flustered Daniel trailing behind. 

 

 

Over these many encounters, Seongwoo and Daniel get to know each other. Since, you know, Daniel’s always at the scene. Always in the picture. The superhero’s presence is different, but not entirely unwelcome. Seongwoo’s garnered himself a good friend, he’d like to think. Wonderful, always laughing Daniel. They’ve gotten to know each other so well, Seongwoo can’t even remember what life without Daniel was. Less kidnapping, yes. But boring, most definitely. 

They’re having coffee at the café near his apartment. It’s one of those rare occurrences where Daniel’s dressed down, wearing flannel with his blond hair slicked back. It’s like Daniel’s a new person. Someone who surprises Seongwoo again and again. Seongwoo can get used to this.

“So,” Seongwoo starts, sipping his tea. “This superhero business is a part time job?”

“Sort of… I’m basically on call whenever they need me. I’m an accountant, first and foremost,” Daniel chuckles, scratching his ear nervously, and Seongwoo finds him so adorable. “Surprise.” Jazz hands.

“Cute,” Seongwoo mutters absentmindedly and freezes when Daniel looks at him strangely. “I mean,” Seongwoo pauses, unsure of how to go on. He finishes the tea in one gulp and inwardly cries when it burns the back of his throat. “You live a very interesting lifestyle. Part time superhero, part time accountant, part time celebrity. What can’t you do, honestly?”

Daniel looks bashful, the tip of his ears turning pink. “No, no. I’m not that great. I’m just here to do my job.” 

“If it weren’t for you, I’d be killed multiple times by now. Assuming I was a cat and I had nine lives to kill."

“I love cats,” Daniel comments softly, eyes beaming and Seongwoo feels that push and pull inside his chest again. When will this strange feeling die. 

They talk for another hour at the café, topics flowing easily between the two of them. Daniel offers to pay as an apology, since Seongwoo is always in these dangerous situations, and Seongwoo waves him off, assures him it’s not Daniel’s fault. He almost misses the slight uneasy laughter but decides to file it away for later. Seongwoo’s been having a lot of fun lately, so he doesn’t want to think about stupid, probably unrelated stuff. 

Afterwards, Daniel takes him to go mini-golfing. He hasn’t done this since the third grade so he almost catapults himself into the ceiling when Daniel places his hands on Seongwoo’s from behind. 

“You have to do it like this.” Daniel teaches him and Seongwoo leans into the touch, just a little bit. Not entirely suspicious at all. 

“Like what again?” Seongwoo bats his eyelashes and Daniel shows him once again. He has no shame, really. 

At the end of the day, Daniel drops Seongwoo off in front of his apartment. “I hope you had fun. I certainly did.” 

“Yeah, we should do this again sometime.”

Seongwoo stands still at the door, unsure of what he’s waiting for. But he can’t hide the disappointed pang in his chest when Daniel turns to leave after saying goodnight. 

Letting out a little whine, Seongwoo walks through the door, prepared to marathon a season worth or shows in a night, and almost makes it to his couch before he suddenly blacks out. 

 

 

There’s a searing pain on the right side of his head. He touches it and finds a small bump. Great, that’s definitely going to swell to ginormous measures tomorrow. 

Blinking, his eyes adjust to the darkness and Seongwoo finds it relatively empty save for the camera’s glint in the corner of the room. Fucking fantastic. Another whacko to deal with.

All of a sudden, the room is illuminated, temporarily blinding him. A pretty voice echoes through the room, and when Seongwoo can see again, a figure in black stands before him.

“Hong-”

“It’s Ong,” Seongwoo corrects tiredly. He wishes his hands were free so he can rub his head.

The villain stares at him detestfully, arms crossed against their chest. “It doesn’t matter what your name is. Just know that you and your boyfriend will die by my hands tonight.”

Seongwoo chokes. His head is spinning. “Boyfriend? I don’t have a boyfriend.”

They’re close enough to hook a finger under his chin. The touch leaves him shaking. “You can’t lie to me. You’re always with him.”

“Buddy, I don’t know how to tell you that I’m single as fuck. Please don’t rub salt on my wounds.”

Her fingernails leave a small knick on his cheek. He’s bleeding now and he has no ointment. It’s going to leave an ugly scar. This day is starting to be terrible. 

“Don’t lie to me, scum,” she spits and Seongwoo grimaces at the saliva on his face. “I know you and God Niel are involved. You guys are seen with each other everyday and he looks at you like you’re his sun.”

Seongwoo starts barking with laughter. “What! You’re entirely mistaken. We’re just friends. Sometimes we hold hands and eat from each other’s plates but that’s it! It’s not like I’m hoarding some crush on him or something.” 

Wait.

He’s starting to feel nauseous, his stomach churning uncomfortably. This can’t fucking be. The very thought of liking the guy is sending him into panic mode. 

“Oh my god, let me out! This can’t be real! We are not dating!” Seongwoo enunciates every single word with a shrilled dramatic scream, rocking back and forth on his chair. 

Before he can get any other word out, a loud crash comes from the left and speak of the devil, God Niel is here in all his spandex glory, looking positively delicious that it’s almost offensive.

It’s over in a couple of seconds. He manages to trap her and Seongwoo calls the authority to take her away. He’s so used to this now. But it’s not just the superhero persona. It’s also being near Daniel. It’s teasing each other. It’s finding comfort in each other’s company. It’s realizing the little things, like Daniel’s continuous laughter is because he’s flustered being around Seongwoo. Everything is making sense and the revelation is freaking Seongwoo out.

He’s sitting alone outside the warehouse he was taken to, when Daniel joins him.

“Are we dating?” Seongwoo asks nonchalantly and Daniel trips over nothing. While Daniel is trying to get up, Seongwoo continues, “Is that why all the villains are after me? Cause they think we’re involved?”

Rocking back and forth on his heels, Daniel says quietly, “I think so? I didn’t want you to freak out, so I trailed after you because I have some enemies who’d do anything to hurt the people I care about.” Seongwoo stands up to look at him and for the very first time since they’ve met, Daniel looks afraid. “Are you mad that I like you? I’m sorry. I can stop. You can go back to your life before, without all these crazy situations.”

“Daniel. Stop talking.”

Daniel does as Seongwoo says, and looks hurt. “Okay, I’ll leave you alone. Make a big announcement-”

And Seongwoo kisses him. At first, Daniel is too shocked to reciprocate. It’s not until a few seconds later that he understands the situation and kisses back greedily, fingers tipping Seongwoo’s chin up so he can get a better angle. Seongwoo absolutely melts into the kiss.

“Did you mean that?” Seongwoo whispers against Daniel’s lips, arms wrapping around his favourite shoulders. “That you care about me?”

Daniel strokes the back of his neck gently. “Why do you think the villains made such an effort to mess around with you?”

Daniel leans in again but Seongwoo stops him with a finger. “Well, we’re going to have to lessen the kidnappings if we’re going to date for real, because I’d rather spend my days with you than being holed up in a dark room.”

Closing the distance between them again, Daniel hums in agreement and laughs into the kiss. 

 

 

 

“Damn,” Daniel comments, taking a good look around. One of his enemies is on the floor clutching his groin in pain, while his henchman is knocked out cold near the table. Out of the corner of Daniel’s eyes, Seongwoo is seated, calmly dressing his own wounds. “What happened here?”

Seongwoo catches Daniel’s gaze and shrugs, discarding the leftover bandages. “This guy,” Seongwoo points to the henchman, “mocked me, and then your friend over there insulted me for dating you. I punched him in the face twice, cause one, I have good taste, thanks. And two, I have to defend your honour somehow.” 

Daniel laughs, finally hurrying over to grab Seongwoo into a bone-crushing hug. He strokes Seongwoo’s head carefully and makes sure he isn’t hurt anywhere else. “I love you.”

“Please,” Seongwoo expresses with an annoyed face, lightly pushing Daniel back with his fingers. “You don’t even need to show up anymore. By the time you get here, I already handled it.” 

“That’s hot. I love a capable man.”

Daniel trails after Seongwoo like a love-sick puppy, kisses and apologizes on the tip of his tongue. Seongwoo’s pretending that he’s mad, but in all honesty, he’s thinking that he’s probably the luckiest guy in the world. They debate about what they’re having for dinner, whether Seongwoo should have a superhero name as well, and if they should adopt another cat. 

It’s funny, how Seongwoo thought his life was mundane when it’s not. _Not anymore_ , at least, Seongwoo quietly corrects himself, glimpsing at Daniel’s cheerful face walking beside him.

Yeah, Seongwoo can definitely get used to this.

**Author's Note:**

> don't you just love when [clenches fist] your otp is in love in every single universe  
> thanks j for the beta ;w;


End file.
